Auction News

Auction from Hemmings Classic Car

DINGMAN TWO
RM Auctions is going back to the Michael Dingman collection in Hampton, New Hampshire, for another weekend of world class, no-reserve Fords. RM previously offered cars from Dingman in June 2006, in a spectacular extravaganza. Six years later, on June 8-9, they'll again offer about 50 of Dingman's cars, as well as more than 1,400 signs. At press time, we didn't have the exact details of consignments, other than knowing the cars will be primarily Fords. Hemmings Web Editor Dan Strohl attended the previous sale, and said, "The Fords he had were just extraordinary." You can expect serious Ford collectors from around the world to be bidding serious amounts. Contact: www.rmauctions.com.
ELDO LANDAU
Kiko Auctions isn't a big name, but they seem to have a knack for consigning interesting, low-mileage examples, like the 1977 Cadillac Eldorado Landau they'll be selling on May 5 at their Classic & Vintage car auction in Canfield, Ohio. Fans of these beautiful cars will be interested in its original, 32,175-mile condition, and a striking triple-red color scheme. Contact: www.kikoauctions.com.
AUCTION PROFILECar -- 1933 Duesenberg Franay sedanAuctioneer -- Dan KruseLocation -- Smithville, TexasDate -- March 3, 2012Lot Number -- 83Condition -- #3Reserve -- N/AAverage selling price -- $1,500,000Top price bid -- $1,900,000
The buildup to the sale of cars from the Dick Burdick collection in Texas resulted in hot international interest and $4.83 million in sales. Only two cars didn't sell, a Brass Era Napier and the increasingly famous Queen of Diamonds Franay-bodied Duesenberg J. We've been following J365 in these pages for several years, and have noticed its tremendous appreciation since it appeared at auction in Branson in 2009, where it sold for $777,600.
Since then, the car has remained in the same mid-Seventies condition (thus the metallic pink), with an incorrect interior. It's presentable and could be made into a driver, but the future almost certainly includes a full and proper restoration. So why the 244 percent increase in value? Word on Duesenberg Street is that there's a Pebble Beach invitation attached to the car, after it gets restored to show quality. We'd guess Burdick's reserve on the car wasn't too far away from the top bid, which itself was extraordinary for a car that will need another half-million dollars to restore. There is only one of these, and we expect that someday, after it has appeared at Pebble Beach, it will sell and perhaps set a record for a four-door Duesenberg sedan.

This article originally appeared in the June, 2012 issue of Hemmings Classic Car.